It’s a bit of a different post this week in the form of an update, so I hope you don’t mind. Time has been in short supply lately and you may have noticed the distinct lack of blog post last week. Actually, a few of you might already be aware of the stress and worry that myself and my mum have been experiencing with my elderly dad recently. I haven’t shared a great deal online about it, maybe just snippets here and there on Instagram.
Well, we’re now entering the 9th week of my dad being in hospital and it’s been an exhausting, stressful and very worrying period.. After a false start and poor care/service from the first hospital, dad eventually had a brain scan at a second hospital which showed a bleed that was causing pressure and swelling. He was finally operated on at a third hospital. I can’t tell you what a huge relief it was that my dad even survived brain surgery at such a big age… The waiting and pacing around on the day of surgery was a horrid time. I’m in awe of the neurosurgeon who performed the op. Anyway, after being moved again to a fourth hospital dad is now finally in a rehabilitation hospital close by (the fifth and final move, so many moves!).
It’s been so sad though, to see an otherwise fit man, change to someone who can barely walk and has cognitive problems… struggling to even remember what he ate for lunch. I’ve had to be mum’s support through all of it. Constant hospital visits and helping mum out have wiped out swathes of time, though I’ve been happy to do what I can and be there for my parents. It’s what we do, isn’t it? I’m lucky to have a very good relationship with both mum and dad and treasure every moment with them. I hope I have them both around for some time to come and Christmas will be even more special this year.
Sewing-wise I did manage to carve out small amounts of time… maybe an hour or two here and there in the last four weeks. The velvet midi skirt and the latest Burda sweater were fairly quick makes, so ideal really. And now we finally have a date of November 30th as a possible coming home time for my dad once all the home nursing care is organised, so it means that a little bit of optimism is surfacing and Christmas can be looked forward to…. So with thoughts of moving forward, last week, for various technical reasons, I decided on moving my blog over to WordPress. I knew it wasn’t going to be easy as I had read about the process and possible pitfalls and I didn’t want to totally mess things up, so I enlisted professional help. As you can see the new set-up and design is now working and I’m really loving it. I hope you do too. By the way. Please don’t hesitate to let me know if any links aren’t working etc.
What of my sewing plans for the run up to Christmas? Well, at the moment I’m working on Vogue 8685 in stretch crushed red velvet. I expect you’ve seen some sneak peeks on Instagram already. The dress is to be my entry for the ‘Little Red Dress Project’ run by @thetwighlightstitcher and @rosabella.angelica on Instagram and if I remember right, the reveal week is just before Christmas, so I’m afraid you’ll have to be patient and wait for it be shown on the blog then 🙂 Before all of that though there is ‘OWOP’…which stands for One Week One Pattern….you can learn about it here. It starts on November 25th and I’m all set to join in. I’m focusing on my basic pants/trousers pattern which I use all the time and I’ll be mixing and matching outfits using all of the styles that I have in my wardrobe. Last up is going to be my contribution to Designin’ December. Run by the lovely Linda of NicedressthanksImadeit! Full details are here. For the challenge, I decided to make some wide leg pants using using a design by Valentino as my basic inspiration. I have some fabulous chocolate brown pinstripe Italian wool that I bought from Minerva Crafts and I’m going to attempt inserting a cross-grain side panel down the sides …wish me luck!
Other things I’m thinking of sewing for the Winter period are another Burda 104 with the draped collar in light terracotta picot sweater knit, a cowl neck long sleeved top in claret jersey and a tweed ‘A’ line skirt. I also realised today that I could do with another short wool coat, so I might look at options for that.
I’d love to hear your plans and whether you’re getting much sewing time lately. I noticed that when I did get an hour or so of time to get to my machine, that I appreciated it all the more and how therapeutic it was. Why not tell me in about it in comments?
I am sorry to hear about the trials you & your mum have been going through with your dads health lately but am glad that things look like they are on the upswing now. I’ll keep y’all in prayer.
I’ve found when I have only little blocks of time to sew I relish them more than & tend to slow down & pay more attention to details. Hope to have 30 min tomorrow to stay stitch curves & necklines & perhaps sew a couple of front plackets on my blouse
Author
That’s really sweet of you, thanks Becca. It’s true, yes, I feel much more focused on sewing when I finally get some time. I hope you enjoy your sewing time tomorrow xx
Hello my lovely, I think it’s great to write this post – real life happens in between sewing projects. I know you’ve had a rough few months and I hope all goes well for the 30th. Also, yay for WordPress! I looked for the WordPress follow button so we can connect accounts but can’t find it – I’ll look on my computer on Monday. Have a restful weekend and enjoy your snatches of sewing where you can xx
Author
Aww, thanks Helen love. Absolutely, real life does happen and it can’t be ignored. Re-Wordpress button. Not sure that I do have one actually as I’m on the “.org” you see, not “.com”. I’ll check my settings though, you never know I might find out where it’s kept…lol! Can you tell I’m a WordPress newb 🙂
Hehe, it might just be me being dense! Will check next week 👍
Author
Most likely me Helen. It’s probably that I need to install an extra plugin or widget or something….not used to all this new terminology, hehe!
Diane, so glad that things are going a bit better for your family. I know how worried you were when we saw each other at GBSB and it seems like things didn’t get easier after that. But very glad that it’s looking to be brightening up a bit.
I love the new look blog, it’s super professional and it feels like the migration went well. I looked at it on my phone the other day, but just had a proper mooch on my laptop, and it really is ace! It would be great if you could open comments on older posts, as I saw a few from earlier this year that I had missed and wanted to drop you a line. Or maybe it’s not possible due to the migration?
Author
Aww, thanks for stopping by Alex and for the kind words. 😘 I’m chuffed that you like the new look blog. Ooh, good point about opening comments back up. It might be a setting that I need to tweak on the dashboard. I’ll get on to it tomorrow as I had just turned off the laptop (replying on my phone at the mo).
Sorry to hear about your rough times with your dad’s health – that’s quite the ordeal for your family. I’m glad that you have found moments to sew, and that it was a nice break for you! I’m dragging myself through the finishing on a casual bomber style jacket now, and it’s been a real pain! But today I had a chance to meet up with some local sewing friends for a sewing afternoon, and it really was the best atmosphere to get the boring bits over with – and push on to (almost) finish. It felt good to sew, even though I wasn’t looking forward to the project!
Author
That’s kind of you to say Chloe. Thank you xx Your sewing meet up sounded lovely and I’m glad you made headway with your bomber, I bet it’ll be fab! I nearly finished my red dress yesterday too. Just a couple of hems to go 😊
Sorry to hear about your Dad. I hope things settle down for you now. I’m looking forward to seeing your Designer me-made Copy. The Original Valentino is just lovely!
Author
Thanks so much Linda xx Yes, fingers crossed that the worst is over for the time being.
And I’m looking forward to sewing those wide pants too. Should be fun. Thanks for organising it all Linda x
I am sorry to hear that your father has continued to have ongoing health problems. I suspect there will be quite a period of adjustment when he goes home. So keep your load as light as possible, because all this will take time and be tiring. And sewing – maybe make it something that is relaxing and don’t demand too much of yourself.
Author
You’re so kind, thanks Sarah Liz. You’re absolutely right…It’s going to be quite a period of adjustment and mum will find it quite stressful. I’m definitely only going to plan easier sewing projects that I can dip into when a bit of sewing therapy is needed.
Aww – i’m so glad he’ll be home for Christmas. Big hugs xxxxx
Author
Thanks, my lovely. Fingers crossed. xx
I thought I had responded to this post. I’m so sorry about your Dad. It’s so hard as our parents age, but there is an inevitability to it sadly. Stay positive and I hope your Dad gets his strength back. I’m thinking of you.
Author
Thank you Sue, you’re very kind. Yes, sadly it is an inevitability. Dad is back home now, but it’s still very tough with carers visiting and mum not coping too well. I’m still helping as much as I can.